On sidelines of SCO summit, FM assures Russian counterpart of deepening energy cooperation

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari Thursday assured his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, of deepening cooperation between the two nations in energy and other sectors.

FM Bilawal is in Goa, India to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) summit at the invitation of Minister for External Affairs of the Republic of India — the current chair of the SCO.

The meeting between the foreign ministers came on the sidelines of the SCO summit, where they discussed “bilateral, regional and international matters of mutual interest”, a statement from the Foreign Office said.

During the meeting, the foreign minister assured his Russian counterpart to “work closely for further deepening cooperation in food security, energy and people-to-people contacts”.

FM Bilawal said that the SCO opened new vistas of cooperation and coordination with Russia.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said last Thursday that cheap oil imported from Russia would arrive in Pakistan soon.

He made the comments during a National Assembly session in response to the opposition Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) claims that the incumbent government had come into power through a “foreign conspiracy”.

Minister of State for Petroleum Musadik Malik had told Reuters last week that the government had made its first purchase of Russian crude oil, and a cargo would dock at Karachi port in May.

The country imported 154,000 bpd of oil in 2022, mostly from two Middle Eastern countries — Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. If Russian imports reach 100,000 bpd, it would mean a significant plunge in imports from the Gulf states.

In a press conference last week, the Maliki Friday that the government would set up a refinery to meet the country’s energy needs.

“Energy is necessary for economic progress,” he said. “Pakistan will be on the road to progress soon.”

He shared that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved the project — which has been in the works for some time — during a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE). The new refinery would cost between Rs10-14 billion.